Federal cuts hurt transit systems

By Beverly A. Scott

The “Don’t X Out Public Transit” national public awareness campaign begins today. As Washington considers cutting 30 percent of federal transportation funding overall, our lack of investment in infrastructure has reached crisis proportions. Last year, the U.S. Department of Transportation issued a report that described a $77.7 billion backlog in the level of capital investment that would be required to bring national transit systems into a “state of good repair.”

For MARTA, a 30 percent funding reduction would translate into about $24 million less annually and impact our ability to buy and maintain vehicles. Severe cuts to transit funding would create severe hardships for millions of workers, students, seniors and the disabled community, who have no other reliable transportation.

But we must do more than simply maintain the status quo; we must also invest for the future because others are rapidly outpacing us.

It’s important to let our leaders know that failure to approve a robust transportation funding bill is unacceptable. Reauthorization of the federal transportation funding bill is two years late; a recent agreement to delay a congressional vote until March doesn’t help solve the problems we’re facing today.

The uncertainty over federal transportation funding underscores the profound importance of the upcoming Transportation Investment Act referendum here at home. If the referendum passes muster with metro Atlanta voters in July, the resulting sales tax revenues would generate an estimated $7 billion over 10 years.

Public meetings are being held this month to solicit feedback on the multibillion-dollar project list before it is finalized by the Atlanta Regional Roundtable in October. Take the time to become informed and get involved. Visit www.supporttransit.org to participate and share your opinions with Congress about smart transportation investments to keep our nation moving forward.

Beverly A. Scott is CEO and general manager of MARTA.